John C. Reilly, Daniel Craig Threw a Lobster Boil in Ireland

Courtesy of Alchemy

'The Lobster'

The actor tells THR why Yorgos Lanthimos' dark comedy is hitting home with millennials and what animal he'd prefer to become.

Despite the futuristic, dystopian setting of The Lobster — Yorgos Lanthimos’ new film that sees singletons confined to a hotel and given 45 days to find a partner before being turned into an animal — John C. Reilly says the movie is quite relatable, particularly with a certain generation: millennials.

“They’re in the midst of figuring out what relationships mean in our current age, fluidity of gender roles and the explosion of dating from social media. It’s never been easier to hook up with people, but there’s still the struggle of, ‘What do I want or expect out of a relationship?’ ” Reilly tells The Hollywood Reporter. “[The movie] talks about, ‘What is love?' When we say I love you, I’m committed to you, we’re in this relationship, what does that mean? It means one thing when you start out and are all turned on by each other, but it means other things as time goes on.”

Additionally, the A24 dark comedy’s Ireland shoot with Colin Farrell, Rachel Weisz and Lea Seydoux was full of lighthearted moments. For example, toward the end of the shoot, Reilly gathered the cast and crew together for, of course, a lobster boil.

“I got the lobsters from a local fisherman who lived down the road, and I suddenly had sixty lobsters to cook on one stove. And right when the party was starting, I realized I was completely unprepared — I don’t know what I was thinking, like I’d just throw them all in one pot,” he laughed.

Thankfully, Weisz’s husband Daniel Craig was also in attendance. “He leaped into action and helped me cook the lobsters. He smashed them open and could wield the knife like James Bond. I felt like I was in good hands.”

So what animal would Reilly opt to become if the world of The Lobster were real? “I just did a voiceover for a documentary about bears, and I have to say, bears are pretty cool,” he said. “They’re quite magical creatures — can you imagine yourself sleeping for eight months without getting up to eat or get a drink of water? That’s what bears do every year!”